Drake promises release of new record ‘in like two weeks’

Drake has promised fans that the release of his new record, expected to be titled For All the Dogs, is imminent.

The Toronto rap giant made the comments onstage on Wednesday (July 26), on the third night of a three-show run at Madison Square Garden in New York City, as he continues his It’s All a Blur tour of North America with 21 Savage. “I will be back soon,” he said. “I have an album dropping for you in, like, two weeks or some shit. But until then, just know, you’re always with me and I’m always thinking of you. Everything I do is for you. Every time I step in that booth, I hope I make you proud.”

The first hint that the self-styled ‘6 God’ would drop new music this year also came in Manhattan, back in January, when he made his return to the live arena with a clutch of intimate shows at the legendary Apollo Theatre in Harlem. “I’ve thought about a bunch of things in life, but at this moment in time, none of those things are stopping making music for you, so I’ll be here for you for a little bit at least,” he teased at the time. “I hope I can strike up some more emotions for you – maybe this year, I might get bored and make another one, who knows?”

Last month, he confirmed a new record was in the works, a day after releasing his debut poetry collection, Titles Ruin Everything: A Stream of Consciousness by Kenza Samir and Aubrey Graham. On June 25, he used cryptic ads in such titles as the New York Post and the Houston Chronicle to direct fans to his website via a QR code; there, he said: “I made an album to go with the book,” the statement reads, before quoting his own lyric from the 2011 single ‘Headlines’. “They say they miss the old Drake girl don’t tempt me. FOR ALL THE DOGS.”

If, as he suggests, Drake is returning to his roots with his next release, it would mark a move away from the musical direction of his last album, last June’s Honestly, Nevermind. That record split opinion, moving into decidedly dancier territory than fans have come to expect from him. “It’s all good if you don’t get it yet. It’s all good,” he said shortly after its release, in response to the mixed reception. “That’s what we do. That’s what we do, we wait for you to catch up. We’re in here though, we caught up already. On to the next. My goodness!”